Improved book-holder



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OWEN B. PARKER, OF WOODVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVED BOOK-HOLDER.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 55,897, dated June 26, 1866.

i To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, OWEN B. PARKER, of Woodville, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Book Holder or Stand and I do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following specitication and represented inthe accompanying drawings, of which- Figure l is a front view, and Fig. 2 a vertical section, of it. In such drawings, A and B are two bars or yokes, each ot which is provided with two projecting lips, c a or b b, arranged as represented. The two bars are connected by two elastic or extension bands, O C, which may be provided with buckles or metallic slides o c, by which they may be taken up or extended, as circumstances ma)Y require, in order to tit the holder to a book, whatever may be its length. Each of the elastic bands is attached to the upper bar, A, and goes through a slot made in the lower bar, and from thence is led to and coilnected to the slide c, made like the frame of a shoe-buckle, and applied to the band so as to slide on4 it, the band going down through itin manner as shown in Fig. 3, which is a lengthwise section of the band and slide.

There is also applied to the lower bar, and so as to be capable of freely revolving on it, two arms, D D. Each of these arms consists ot' two pieces ot' wood or metal, d e, hinged together at two of their ends and connected by a spring,f. The lowerpiece, e, projects from the bar B at right angles, and has a projection or finger, g, extending from it, as represented, such parte being so affixed to the bar B as to be capable oi' being revolved therein to enable the tnger g to be raised from a horizontal -up into a vertical position. Ordinarily the upper portion, d, of the arm D should stand at an acute angle with the part o.

A top view of the bar B with its appliances is shown in Fig. 4.

A hole,'h, is bored or made through the mitldle part of the upper bar, A, and there is attached to the middle of the other bar, B, a piece of ribbon, i, provided with a loop or shoe, s, at its free end. This loop is designed to receive the lower end of a brace or prop, lc, when the upper end ot' such prop or brace is inserted in the hole h.

The purpose of the apparatus is to hold a book open, in order that it may be read from to advantage. In using it the back ot' the book is to be placed on the middle ot' the lower bar, B, and with the covers inserted in the Spaces between the bar and its two lips. Next the ripper bar is to be extended, and the upper edgesot the cover ofthe book are to be brought into the spaces between the bar and its lips..

This having been done, the arms D may be turned so as t0 bring their upper parts, d d, upon the pages when the book may be open.

The linger g to each arm D serves as a lever or handle to enable a person to readilr rotate the arm for the purpose of moving iis part cl either onor olf the book. The fingers may also be employed to hold the leaves open. in which case the said lingers would have to be turned over or upon the leaves.

By means of the elastic or extension bands O G the apparatus may easily be adapted to a book of a duodecimo, octavo, or quarto size.

The prop, when inserted in the upper bar and theloop s ofthe ribbon, will serve. to support the apparatus and a book on and at one inclination to a table. .This prop may be hinged to the upper bar, or it may be constructed so as to admit ot' being extended in length to render it useful for books of dili'erent sizes.

What I clailn as my invention is l. The combination as well as the arrangement ot' the two bars A B, their lips a a b b, and leaf-holders or arms D D with the elastic bands O O.

2. The combination and arrangement ofthe brace-hole and looped strap or ribbon with the two bars A B and their lips 'a a b b, the elastic connections C C, and arms D D4 3. The combination and arrangement ot` the brace or prop and the looped strap with the two bars A B, their lips aa b b, elastic connections C O, and arms D D.

4. The combination of the tingers g g' with the arms D D, the bars A B, their lips aal) b, and elastic connections C O, the whole being as and for the purpose set forth.

OWEN B. PARKER.

Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, L. A. BTLKNAP. 

